Freight management using dynamic route guides

ABSTRACT

A technology is described for a transportation management service. In one example, parameters can be received for transporting a load from an origin location to a destination location. In response, carriers that have available capacity to transport the load can be identified based on the parameters. Meta tags included in a strategic capacity profile defining a strategy for transporting the load can be retrieved. The strategy may be defined by the meta tags, which describe carrier attributes used to select a carrier to transport the load. The meta tags can be used to identify a set of carriers that have attributes that correspond to the meta tags and who are eligible to transport the load based on the parameters. The carrier data for the set of carriers can be provided to a user to allow a selection of one or more carriers to send tenders.

PRIORITY DATA

This application is a continuation of U.S. Pat. Application Serial No.17/701,346, filed Mar. 22, 2022, which is a continuation of U.S. Pat.Application Serial No. 16/846,251, filed Apr. 10, 2020, which claims thebenefit of U.S. Provisional Pat. Application Serial No. 62/832,200,filed Apr. 10, 2019, each of which is incorporated herein by referencein its entirety.

BACKGROUND

The United States truckload freight industry has a set ofcharacteristics that yields a dynamic and complicated marketplace. Thereare significant challenges to planning availability and driving capacityof drivers. The driver, equipment, handling, and scheduling detailsrequire that significant effort is put into matching these requirementsto the proper available capacity. The matching challenge is anchored inthe huge number of trucking companies. About one third of themarketplace capacity is provided by small carriers and an additional onethird is supplied by other carriers that have additional trucks buttypically no more than a hundred. This diverse source of capacity yieldsa robust spot market that fluctuates constantly and a broad network ofbrokers that intermediate a quarter of the industry.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Features and advantages of invention embodiments will be apparent fromthe detailed description which follows, taken in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings, which together illustrate, by way of example,invention features; and, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example system used to host atransportation management service, in accordance with an example of thepresent disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a diagram that illustrates an example carrier record thatincludes meta tags that describe various attributes of a carrier, inaccordance with an example of the present disclosure.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example user interface used tofilter a list of carriers using a strategic capacity profile, inaccordance with an example of the present disclosure.

FIG. 4 is a flow diagram illustrating an example method for a dynamicroute guide, in accordance with an example of the present disclosure.

FIG. 5 is a diagram that illustrates an example price filtering toolused to provide historical paid capacity price per mile for a givenorigin and destination pair, in accordance with an example of thepresent disclosure.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example group tender tool forselecting carriers using a strategic capacity profile and transmittingtenders to the carriers, in accordance with an example of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 7 is a flow diagram illustrating an example method for updatingcarrier data displayed in a graphical user interface in response to ameta tag being dynamically updated.

FIG. 8 is a flow diagram that illustrates an example method foridentifying a set of carriers to transport a load using a transportationmanagement service, in accordance with an example of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 9 is block diagram illustrating an example of a computing devicethat may be used to execute the methods described herein, in accordancewith an example of the present disclosure.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

Before invention embodiments are described, it is to be understood thatthis disclosure is not limited to the particular structures, processsteps, or materials disclosed herein, but is extended to equivalentsthereof as would be recognized by those ordinarily skilled in therelevant arts. It should also be understood that terminology employedherein is used for the purpose of describing particular examples orembodiments only and is not intended to be limiting. The same referencenumerals in different drawings represent the same element. Numbersprovided in flow charts and processes are provided for clarity inillustrating steps and operations and do not necessarily indicate aparticular order or sequence.

Furthermore, the described features, structures, or characteristics canbe combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments. In thefollowing description, numerous specific details are provided, such asexamples of layouts, distances, network examples, etc., to provide athorough understanding of various invention embodiments. One skilled inthe relevant art will recognize, however, that such detailed embodimentsdo not limit the overall inventive concepts articulated herein, but aremerely representative thereof.

As used in this written description, the singular forms “a,” “an” and“the” include express support for plural referents unless the contextclearly dictates otherwise. Thus, for example, reference to “a network”includes a plurality of such networks.

Reference throughout this specification to “an example” means that aparticular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connectionwith the example is included in at least one invention embodiment. Thus,appearances of the phrases “an example” or “an embodiment” in variousplaces throughout this specification are not necessarily all referringto the same embodiment.

As used herein, a plurality of items, structural elements, compositionalelements, and/or materials can be presented in a common list forconvenience. However, these lists should be construed as though eachmember of the list is individually identified as a separate and uniquemember. Thus, no individual member of such list should be construed as ade facto equivalent of any other member of the same list solely based ontheir presentation in a common group without indications to thecontrary. In addition, various invention embodiments and examples can bereferred to herein along with alternatives for the various componentsthereof. It is understood that such embodiments, examples, andalternatives are not to be construed as defacto equivalents of oneanother, but are to be considered as separate and autonomousrepresentations under the present disclosure.

Furthermore, the described features, structures, or characteristics canbe combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments. In thefollowing description, numerous specific details are provided, such asexamples of layouts, distances, network examples, etc., to provide athorough understanding of invention embodiments. One skilled in therelevant art will recognize, however, that the technology can bepracticed without one or more of the specific details, or with othermethods, components, layouts, etc. In other instances, well-knownstructures, materials, or operations may not be shown or described indetail to avoid obscuring aspects of the disclosure.

In this application, “comprises,” “comprising,” “containing” and“having” and the like can have the meaning ascribed to them in U.S.Patent law and can mean “includes,” “including,” and the like, and aregenerally interpreted to be open ended terms. The terms “consisting of”or “consists of” are closed terms, and include only the components,structures, steps, or the like specifically listed in conjunction withsuch terms, as well as that which is in accordance with U.S. patent law.“Consisting essentially of” or “consists essentially of” have themeaning generally ascribed to them by U.S. Patent law. In particular,such terms are generally closed terms, with the exception of allowinginclusion of additional items, materials, components, steps, orelements, that do not materially affect the basic and novelcharacteristics or function of the item(s) used in connection therewith.For example, trace elements present in a composition, but not affectingthe composition’s nature or characteristics would be permissible ifpresent under the “consisting essentially of” language, even though notexpressly recited in a list of items following such terminology. Whenusing an open ended term in this written description, like “comprising”or “including,” it is understood that direct support should be affordedalso to “consisting essentially of” language as well as “consisting of”language as if stated explicitly and vice versa.

The terms “first,” “second,” “third,” “fourth,” and the like in thedescription and in the claims, if any, are used for distinguishingbetween similar elements and not necessarily for describing a particularsequential or chronological order. It is to be understood that any termsso used are interchangeable under appropriate circumstances such thatthe embodiments described herein are, for example, capable of operationin sequences other than those illustrated or otherwise described herein.Similarly, if a method is described herein as comprising a series ofsteps, the order of such steps as presented herein is not necessarilythe only order in which such steps may be performed, and certain of thestated steps may possibly be omitted and/or certain other steps notdescribed herein may possibly be added to the method.

As used herein, comparative terms such as “increased,” “decreased,”“better,” “worse,” “higher,” “lower,” “enhanced,” and the like refer toa property of a device, component, or activity that is measurablydifferent from other devices, components, or activities in a surroundingor adjacent area, in a single device or in multiple comparable devices,in a group or class, in multiple groups or classes, or as compared tothe known state of the art. For example, a data region that has an“increased” risk of corruption can refer to a region of a memory devicewhich is more likely to have write errors to it than other regions inthe same memory device. A number of factors can cause such increasedrisk, including location, fabrication process, number of program pulsesapplied to the region, etc.

Numerical amounts and data may be expressed or presented herein in arange format. It is to be understood that such a range format is usedmerely for convenience and brevity and thus should be interpretedflexibly to include not only the numerical values explicitly recited asthe limits of the range, but also to include all the individualnumerical values or sub-ranges encompassed within that range as if eachnumerical value and sub-range is explicitly recited. As an illustration,a numerical range of “about 1 to about 5” should be interpreted toinclude not only the explicitly recited values of about 1 to about 5,but also include individual values and sub-ranges within the indicatedrange. Thus, included in this numerical range are individual values suchas 2, 3, and 4 and sub-ranges such as from 1-3, from 2-4, and from 3-5,etc., as well as 1, 1.5, 2, 2.3, 3, 3.8, 4, 4.6, 5, and 5.1individually.

This same principle applies to ranges reciting only one numerical valueas a minimum or a maximum. Furthermore, such an interpretation shouldapply regardless of the breadth of the range or the characteristicsbeing described.

Example Embodiments

An initial overview of the technology is provided below and specifictechnology embodiments are then described in further detail. Thisinitial summary is intended to aid readers in understanding thetechnologies more quickly, but is not intended to identify key oressential technological features, nor is it intended to limit the scopeof the claimed subject matter.

Technologies for a transportation management service are described. Inone example, a transportation management service can include a cloudsoftware service developed to serve the Transportation Management System(TMS) needs of small to medium businesses with network accessible tools.The transportation management service can help a business plan,optimize, manage, report, and account for the movement of goods.Historically, larger shippers, carriers and freight brokers commonlyutilized transportation management systems to improve their businessperformance. The advent of cloud based Software as a Service (SaaS)provides access to TMS capabilities with less capital which opens thedoor for smaller businesses to enjoy tools and capabilities that supporttheir freight management objectives. The transportation managementservice described herein operates as a unified platform in that it isbuilt for all parties of a transaction to interact digitally. Whentrading partners are subscribers to the transportation managementservice, their transactions share the benefit of automated dataexchange. The transportation management service can be used to serviceshippers, carriers, and brokers that concentrate on the truckingtransportation market, as well as other markets, such as, railtransportation, ship transportation, and air transportation.

Some of the factors considered when selecting a carrier can include:

-   cargo handling factors, such as, equipment specifications and driver    qualification that limits which trucks can handle specific    shipments;-   demand characteristics, such as, seasonality (e.g., agricultural and    consumption seasonality) which can drive regional markets, business    cycles (e.g., weekly, monthly, and quarterly cycles) that exacerbate    broader demand changes, particularly near the end of a period, and    trends and fashion;-   supply variables, such as, transit time uncertainty; unpredictable    drive times (e.g., congestion), unpredictable pickup and delivery    times (e.g., warehouse queues, storms and weather that disrupt    arrival schedules), equipment failure and vehicle safety standards    enforcement;-   driver availability, such as, regulations (drivers time is strictly    limited by day and week), driver turnover, and barriers to entry    (e.g., safety focused eligibility requirements);-   pricing volatility (e.g., the supply and demand factors lead to    local, regional and national imbalances that are constantly vetted    out in spot markets that adjust constantly); and-   freight brokerage (e.g., a large number of registered freight    brokerage firms spend their days building and applying their    knowledge of freight markets to effectively match demand to supply.

Past Solutions

The combination of listed dynamics makes the truckload freight marketdifficult to plan and manage. Neither the demand for shipments from aspecific shipper nor the supply of capacity from specific carriers atthe right time and place can be easily predicted to allow for smoothcontracting. The complexity of the situation has historically beenresolved using three methods: route guides, load boards, and lanehistories.

Static route guides are structured allocations of shipments to specificcarriers in specific lanes. When shipment orders for a planned lane arereceived the shipments are then distributed to carriers based upon ahierarchy that was previously established. Static route guides have beenused when shipment volumes and carrier capacity are larger and moreconsistent. Static route guides provide static pricing for shipments andthe process reduces stress between parties. Static route guides oftenuse a shot clock for response time and cascade from carrier to carrier.However, static route guides use human administration to allocateshipments to carriers, so any uncertainty becomes a barrier. Staticroute guides have made it difficult to introduce additional carriers midcycle without upsetting the other carriers in the guide. When marketsmove quickly, the administration burden associated with static routeguides has resulted in a lagging response to the market. When staticroute guides fail to achieve an allocation, the structured time iswasted, which can lead to a need to expedite orders at great expense.

Load boards are online and/or e-mailed lists that allow shippers andbrokers to post loads and carriers to post trucks. There are public loadboards that are available as subscription services in a broadmany-to-many relationships and private load boards that are one-to-many.Load boards can be a low cost way to get broad market exposure tofreight and capacity, and administration may be tied to current need.However, postings are typically manual login and data entry, and oftenseveral identical postings are made in competing platforms. Also, sincethey are manual, posting updates lag the change in actual availability,which often leads to frustrating communication and wasted effort. Thebroad lists of available loads and available trucks leave all parties tospend considerable effort sifting through lists to identify were theyare willing to negotiate. Since there are many transactional engagementswhere parties have little or no historical foundation, the negotiationprocess is often strained by the uncertainty of intent and performance.Frequently the matching process connects businesses for the first andlast time, yielding higher risk and contracting cost for both parties.

In the past, lane history has been a popular tool of freight brokers.Likely capacity for current freight is identified in the history ofcarriers that have hauled similar shipments in the recent past. Lanehistory provides established track records for informing a buyingdecision and changing search criteria allows the scope of relevanthistory to be contracted or expanded. However, defining the mostappropriate search criteria for the freight and market conditions is anart form that requires experience. Once an effective list of carriers isdefined, the process of prioritizing and contacting the carriers islabor and time intensive.

Examples of the Technology

The following examples pertain to specific invention embodiments andpoint out specific features, elements, or steps that can be used orotherwise combined in achieving such embodiments. In one example, atransportation management service can be provided as software as aservice (SaaS) hosted in a computing service provider environment (e.g.,a “cloud” environment). The transportation management system may includetools that allow users to develop capacity strategies for repeatedtransportation scenarios. In one example, a user can create a strategiccapacity profile that defines a strategy for transporting a load. Thestrategy can be defined using meta tags that describe carrierattributes. The meta tags can be used to select a carrier that has thecarrier attributes to transport the load.

To further describe the present technology, examples are now providedwith reference to the figures. FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating anexample of a system 100 on which the present technology may be executed.As illustrated, the system 100 can include a transportation managementservice 106 hosted on one or more servers 104 located in a computingservice environment 102. In one example, the transportation managementservice 106 may be a software as a service (SaaS). A SaaS model allowsinstallation and operation of application software in the computingservice environment 102. End users can access the transportationmanagement service 106 using client devices 116, such as desktopcomputers, laptops, tablets, smartphones, etc. running web browsers orother lightweight client applications. Those familiar with the art willrecognize that the computing service environment 102 may be described asa “cloud” environment.

A graphical user interface 122 executed on a client device 116 may allowtendering of a freight load to a carrier using a strategic capacityprofile 108 for a load transportation scenario, as described in moredetail later. The graphical user interface 122 can be used to selectmeta tags 110 that describe carrier attributes and the meta tags 110 canbe used to create a strategic capacity profile 108 for a loadtransportation scenario. In one example, the meta tags 110 may bedynamic, such that the meta tags 110 are dynamically updated withcarrier information which causes the carrier information displayed inthe graphical user interface 122 to be dynamically updated. A user canuse the graphical user interface 122 to create a strategic capacityprofile 108 for a load transportation scenario, and the strategiccapacity profile 108 can then be used to target specific carrierswithout having to replicate search criteria at each step. The graphicaluser interface 122 can then be used to tender a load to a selectedcarrier, as described below.

Generating Meta Tags for Carriers

The transportation management service 106 can be configured to generatemeta tags 110 for carriers to describe carrier attributes, includingservice attributes, qualification attributes, risk attributes ofcarriers, as well as other carrier attributes. In one example, carrierattributes can be manually input (e.g., via a user interface) and thetransportation management service 106 may generate static meta tags 110that represent the carrier attributes and the transportation managementservice 106 can assign the static meta tags 110 to the carriers (e.g.,added to carrier data records 200 as shown in FIG. 2 ).

In another example, the transportation management service 106 cangenerate dynamic meta tags 110 which describe the attributes of thecarriers, and the dynamic meta tags 110 can be assigned to the carriers(e.g., added to carrier data records as shown in FIG. 2 ) to allow thecarriers to be identified using the dynamic meta tags 110. For example,the transportation management service 106 may be configured to obtaincarrier attributes for one or more carriers from an externalsubscription service 118 and generate dynamic meta tags 110 for thecarriers. For example, carrier attributes can be automatically obtainedfrom external data subscription services 118, such as DAT CarrierWatch,MyCarrierPackets.com, SaferWatch or Risk Monitoring Insurance Servicesthat provide information regarding the insurance carried, qualificationsobtained and additional services provided by a carrier. In one example,one or more background service 124 (e.g., software agents) can beconfigured to perform queries against data obtained from the externalsubscription services 118 and the transportation management service 106may identify carriers with specific attributes (e.g., equipment type,shipping regions, shipping lanes, Haz-Mat, C-TPAT, Compliance, Safety,Accountability (CSA) rating, etc.). As a specific example, a backgroundservice 124 of the transportation management service 106 can query anexternal subscription service 118 for carriers that are qualified tohandle hazardous materials and assign dynamic meta tags 110 to carrierrecords associated with the carriers indicating that the carriers arequalified to handle the hazardous materials. Thereafter, the dynamicmeta tags 110 assigned to the carriers can be used to identify thecarriers as being able to handle hazardous materials.

Dynamic meta tags 110 for carriers can be can be automatically updatedto add, delete, and/or modify carrier attributes. Automatically updatingmeta tags 110 may change the attributes of a carrier which may qualifyor disqualify the carrier from transporting a load. As an example,updating a dynamic meta tag 110 indicating a CSA rating for a carriermay qualify or disqualify the carrier from transporting a freight loadbased on the CSA rating of the carrier indicated by the dynamic meta tag110. A dynamic meta tag 110 can be updated anytime that a carrierattribute changes. In one example, the transportation management service105 (e.g., via a background service 124) may periodically query dataobtained from an external subscription service 118 to determine whetherthe attributes of a carrier have changed and update correspondingdynamic meta tags 110 to indicate the change in carrier attributes.Illustratively, the transportation management service 106 may check forupdates to carrier attributes server times an hour, once an hour,nightly, weekly, monthly, or when data is received (e.g., pushed) froman external subscription service 118.

In one example, dynamic meta tags 110 can contain a list of carriersthat have reviewed loads in the system or participated in pricing andnegotiation activity that failed to commence a transaction, so thereforewould not be recorded in a carrier transaction history. As a specificexample, a dynamic meta tag 110 for a carrier may include proposedpricing for freight loads shipped via a specific shipping lane, and thecarrier’s proposed pricing on a previous transaction can be used todetermine whether the carrier meets the pricing parameters of a freightload.

In one example, meta tags 110 containing carrier transaction informationand carrier activity information can be tiered or gradated within anattribute to improve prioritization of carriers. As a specific example,carriers that have submitted pricing in the same lane may be segmentedinto different meta tags 110 by the frequency or consistency of suchprice submissions to distinguish the relative likelihood of completing atransaction with the carriers in one list versus those in another.

Meta tags 110, in one example, may be generated for a specific customeror entity to allow the meta tags 110 to be used in one or more strategiccapacity profiles 108 for the customer or entity. In another example,meta tags 110 can be generated and provided to any customer or entitywho uses the transportation management service 106 (e.g., any subscriberor entity of a transportation management service platform).

Custom Strategic Capacity Profiles

The transportation management service 106 may allow a user to create astrategic capacity profile 108 for a load transportation scenario and/ordynamically generate a strategic capacity profile 108 for a loadtransportation scenario. A strategic capacity profile 108 may define astrategy for transporting a load from an origin to a destination using aplurality of meta tags 110 that describe carrier attributes. The carrierattributes described by the meta tags 110 can be used to identify one ormore carriers that have attributes that correspond to the carrierattributes described by the meta tags 110. As an illustration, astrategic capacity profile 108 may include meta tags 110 havinginformation can be used to identify a carrier is qualified to: handlehazardous materials, is C-TPAT Certified, has an acceptable CSA rating,or handle over-dimensional cargo, as well as other qualifications.Instead of selecting individual meta tags 110, the strategic capacityprofile 108 can be employed to identify carriers that have theattributes described by the meta tags 110. As described earlier, themeta tags 110 may be dynamic meta tags 110, and as such, the strategiccapacity profile 108 can be dynamically updated when a dynamic meta tag110 included in the strategic capacity profile 108 is updated.

In one example, a user can manually build a strategic capacity profile108 using the graphical user interface 122. For example, a user canselect meta tags 110 that describe carrier attributes that correspond tothe user’s transportation requirements and add the meta tags 110 to thestrategic capacity profile 108 (e.g., add the meta tags 110 to a controlelement in the graphical user interface 122). After adding the meta tags110 to the strategic capacity profile 108, the strategic capacityprofile 108 can be saved for future use (e.g., via a save profile button128 in the graphical user interface 122). The transportation managementservice 106 can store the manually generated strategic capacity profile108 to a data store 112 to allow the strategic capacity profile 108 tobe retrieved and used for future queries. Thereafter, a user can loadthe strategic capacity profile 108 (e.g., via a load profile button inthe graphical user interface 122) and the strategic capacity profile 108can be used to identify qualified carriers to transport a load withouthaving to initiate individual queries, saving the user time and effortassociated with having to select individual meta tags 110 each time auser wants to tender a freight load to a carrier.

A strategic capacity profile 108 can be used in conjunction with othersearch criteria to narrow or extend the focus of a search for carriersto transport a load. For example, a filtering technique that uses metatags 110 included in a strategic capacity profile 108 and additionalsearch parameters, such as carrier load history, recorded availablecapacity, etc. can be used to identify a list of carriers. Also, thestrategic capacity profile 108 can be applied as a filter (as shown inFIG. 3 ) to target specific carriers without having to replicate searchcriteria at each step.

In another example, the transportation management service 106 may beconfigured to dynamically generate a strategic capacity profile 108 fora load transportation scenario using transportation parameters providedby a user and meta tags 110 that correspond to the transportationparameters. For example, the transportation management service 106 mayevaluate the transportation parameters to identify attributes (e.g.,origin, destination, freight weight, freight type, pickup date, deliverydate, etc.) that can be used to identify a freight transportation methodwhich can be utilized to transport a freight load. After the attributeshave been identified, the transportation management service 106 can mapthe attributes to meta tags 110 and generate a strategic capacityprofile 108 that defines a strategy for transporting the freight load.As an example, a user may input load details to the graphical userinterface 122 (or upload a load profile to the transportation managementservice 106) where the load details may include an origin, destination,freight type and weight. The transportation management service 106 mayevaluate the load details and map the origin, destination, freight typeand weight to corresponding meta tags 110 assigned to carriers. Thetransportation management service 106 can then generate a strategiccapacity profile 108 to include the meta tags 110. The dynamicallygenerated strategic capacity profile 108 can then be used to identify alist of carriers assigned the meta tags 110 and a user can tender theload to one or more of the carriers. The transportation managementservice 106 can store the dynamically generated strategic capacityprofile 108 to a data store 112 to allow the dynamically generatedstrategic capacity profile 108 to be retrieved and used for futurequeries. As described earlier, meta tags 110 included in a strategiccapacity profile 108 can include dynamically generated meta tags 110,and as such, the strategic capacity profile 108 can be dynamicallyupdated when one or more of the meta tags 110 included in the strategiccapacity profile 108 is updated.

Shippers and freight brokers can develop considerable skill in how theychoose to source carrier capacity based upon the freight characteristicsand condition of the trucking capacity market. If a user exposes freighttoo broadly then the user wastes time negotiating with extraneousparties, whereas if the user exposes the freight too narrowly thencritical coverage time may be lost and the cost to cover increases.Shippers and brokers can more effectively target the likely carriersfirst and then focus in on the right balance of market exposure. Thecommon methods of targeted searching of the most likely carriersinclude: load histories-carriers that have previously hauled the exactsame origin and destination point pair, and lane histories-carriers thathave previously hauled for the broker identified by other criteria, suchas State A to State B, Zip Code 123XX to Zip Code 456XX, carriers thathaul ice-cream at -10 degrees. Load and lane history searchesconsistently fail to capture carriers that have demonstrated interest inopportunities but have not yet completed a transaction.

Additionally, shipment level characteristics can differentiate whichcarriers may have, or not have, a high degree of interest in hauling aload. For example, shipment level characteristics can indicate whether acarrier has had a positive or negative experience hauling a commoditytype, or whether the carrier has a prior positive or negative experienceat a particular warehouse, or whether transportation locations for afreight load align with routes the carrier likes to drive. The morespecific a shipper or broker can be in targeting a search, the quickerand better priced their carrier selection will be. Experienced users canapply their knowledge to build a strategic capacity profile 108 to moreeffectively support the retention and re-use of the user’s experience.The next time that the user identifies the need for the same strategy, astrategic capacity profile 108 allows the user to use the strategiccapacity profile 108 to identify qualified carriers.

A strategic capacity profile 108 is not limited to any one specificuser. Other user of an organization can use the strategic capacityprofile 108 to identify qualified carriers to allow the organization tosupport less experienced users with already validated strategic capacityprofiles 108, making the user more productive and providing them withexamples of how they too can build strategies as additional marketopportunities are developed. The improved qualification efficiency isfelt equally by carrier and shipper or broker. Carriers can be added tostrategic capacity profiles 108, but several meta tags can also be addedto a carrier so discovery and evaluation of a carrier’s interests andabilities can be translated into aligning them with all the mostrelevant capacity strategies early in the relationship. The alignmentcan be established before they even have the benefit of a transactionhistory. Since the builder of the strategy and the implementer of thestrategy can be separate users, the transportation management service106 can support a more effective division of labor. A user that isparticularly effective in the discovery process can identify theappropriate carriers to fit into each strategy, while a user who may bea more effective negotiator can focus on closing transactions.

Price Assistance Using a Strategic Capacity Profile

The dynamics of the trucking market include pricing and negotiatingactivity. Shippers often set cost allocations for products. Brokers andcarriers often compete to win freight allocations. Shippers and Brokersoften purchase trucking capacity. Having misaligned prices can havenegative consequences or all parties. The transportation managementservice 106 can be used to provide visible business intelligence supportto users to generate more effective bid and ask prices.

In one example, the transportation management service 106 can include aprice assist tool used to provide a subscribing company’s historicalpaid capacity price per mile for a given origin and destination pair,which can be graphed to allow a user to view a range and density of paidprices for a given period. As shown in FIG. 4 , a period 402 can beadjusted with a slide bar 404 to allow a user to view pricinginformation within a time frame. As can be appreciated, the period 402can be for any time period. Illustratively, for each transaction in alane pair, a user can drill in to observe: a selected carrier and price,other carriers that participated in the negotiation and their finalprice offers, and the actual negotiation bid/ask cycle with eachcarrier.

The price assist tool 406 can provide a management suggested price,which can be captured in a table that allows management to translatebroader business objectives into the transactional behavior across theenterprise. The price assist tool 406 can provide lane level marketpricing data from external subscription services 118. For example, thereare multiple services that a company can subscribe to which provide lanelevel pricing and trend information. The transportation managementservice 106 can integrate external data into the price assist tool 406to make the external data simultaneously visible with the internal data.In one example, the data provided via the price assist tool 406 caninclude average pricing for transporting a load by carriers. The averagepricing can be calculated using final carrier bid data included inhistorical transaction data for the carriers. Also, in one example, theprice assist tool 406 can be used to determine a price at which to offera tender for transporting the load, wherein the price is based in parton average pricing for transporting the load by one or more carriers.

The price assist tool 406 can use a strategic capacity profile 108 tofilter historical data to only carriers having carrier attributes thatcorrespond to meta tags 110 included in the strategic capacity profile108. Also, in some examples, the price assist tool 406 can have astrategic capacity profile 108 applied such that transactions ofcarriers that have attributes described by meta tags 110 in thestrategic capacity profile 108 can be included in the lane history. Forexample, a filter technique which adds meta tags 110 included in astrategic capacity profile 108 to a search of carriers can be used togenerate a list of carriers within a load history, generate a list ofcarriers that have recorded available capacity in a location, orgenerate a list of carriers that have available equipment to transport afreight load. When shippers and brokers are establishing pricing, one oftheir greatest challenges is gathering the most relevant context toinform a decision. They want to include enough carrier data to provideconfidence while constraining the carrier data to be the most relevantcarrier data.

Group Tender Using a Strategic Capacity Profile

The transportation management service 106 can include a group tenderingtool used to post a freight load to a list of selected carriers 506, asshown in FIG. 5 . When a shipper or broker wants to purchase capacity inthe marketplace, a strategic capacity profile 108 can work seamlesslywith the group tendering tool to post available freight to a targetedlist of selected carriers. A user can select a strategic capacityprofile 502 and carrier information for carriers that have carrierattributes described by the meta tags included in the strategic capacityprofile 502 can be uploaded to the group tendering tool. Within thegroup tendering tool, the user can select individual carriers, or use a“select all” checkbox to further refine the list of carriers 506. Afterdetermining an appropriate price to begin negotiations, which asdescribed above, can be determined automatically, the user can initiatea group tender 504 to the selected carriers (e.g., via a send load infobutton). The tenders can be transmitted to each selected carrier toreview in their own carrier portal.

In one example, a group tender can be integrated into a stored rateproposal for a specific lane and service combination, so that theapplication of pricing the group tender is automated and negotiationscan be initiated simultaneously with all carriers included in themetatag 110. rate contract. As one example, strategic capacity profilecomprising a static list of meta tags can be constructed to includespecific list of carriers considered to be of equal preference for agiven load profile. The strategic capacity profile can then be used togroup tender a freight load to the carriers identified by the strategiccapacity profile. As another example, a dynamic strategic capacityprofile comprising a list of meta tags that define a prequalified subsetof carriers can be used to group tender a freight load to the subset ofcarriers.

The group tendering process can take mere seconds to assess the market,target a precise list of relevant carriers, and initiate a capacitystrategy that is as focused or broad as the user deems appropriate formarket conditions. Such targeted batch negotiation strategies avoidconsiderable labor compared to typical carrier-by-carrier negotiations.Targeted batch negotiation can also avoid adding to the market noisethat is inherent with posting to public load boards.

FIG. 6 is a flow diagram that illustrates an example method 600 for adynamic route guide that utilizes a strategic capacity profile toidentify a list of carriers and sends a sequence of tenders to thecarriers in an attempt to assign a freight load to one of the carriers.The transportation management service 106 described in association withFIG. 1 can include modules configured to perform the method 600 for adynamic route guide.

As in block 602, information for a freight load that includestransportation parameters (e.g., origin location, destination location,pickup data, delivery date, equipment type, etc.) can be combined with astrategic capacity profile, as in block 604, to generate a dynamic routeguide, as in block 606. The dynamic route guide can include a sequenceof tenders that reference specific shipping lanes in which carriersoperate, and can include determined negotiation strategies (e.g., anappropriate price to begin negotiations) which can be used with thecarriers.

As in blocks 608, a sequence of tenders can be sent to the carriers. Asillustrated, a carrier contract for a first carrier can be obtained anda tender can be generated using parameters extracted from the carriercontract (e.g., bid type, book price, bid increment, max buy price,etc.). The tender can then be sent to the carrier. In one example, acarrier hierarchy, based upon the load acceptance history of theincluded carriers, can be used to determine an order in which to sendthe sequence of tenders to the carriers In the case that the freightload is not assigned to a first carrier (e.g., the carrier declined theoffer), then a subsequent tender can be generated using parameters for acarrier contract for a second carrier and the tender can be sent to thesecond carrier. The process above can be repeated until either a carrieraccepts the tender to transport the freight load and the load isassigned to the carrier, as in block 610, or assignment of the freightload fails and, as in block 612, a manual resolution or renegotiation isperformed.

The dynamic route guide described above provides integrated processworkflows that work at a transaction level to democratize theapplication of automated procurement techniques across a diverse set offreight and carriers. Selection of a strategy via a strategic capacityprofile limits which additional fields and subsequent options are usedto tender a freight load thereby reducing an amount of work (e.g.,keystrokes) needed to tender the freight load. The process of tenderinga freight load is made more agile by utilizing meta tags to adjust thenumber of participants which provides the ability to dial marketpressure up or down as the market dictates. Negotiations typically donot have provisions to include email and manual negotiation updates,which isolates participants. The present technology allows for email andmanual updates to include chat, text, and telephonic negotiations thatencompass the wide range of communication techniques small businessesutilize. By incorporating target, step, and limit values, a freighttender can be submitted to be effective over a range of prices ratherthan at a single take it or leave it price. The option to submitautomated approval and pre-declared two-layer approval to thenegotiation process aligns approval to market conditions and addsdelegation that can be executed among a few coworkers or across largeteams. Selecting the degree of negotiation transparency for participantsallows the user an extremely simple method to shield or exposecompetitive activity to their advantage.

Delivering sequential tenders at contracted rates to individual carrierscan yield inadequate results because the carriers may be faced with atake it or leave it price and may be slow to get freight to market. Thisinflexibility may result in the need to expedite freight at greatexpense. Dynamic route guides improve the automated allocation offreight by enabling more flexibility to the tendering process within aroute guide in ways that codify and control behaviors that previouslywere relegated to isolated, inconsistent and manual activities. Enablingcontracts to be applied to one or many carriers allows a fluid andtimely escalation of the number of competitive participants from onetender phase to a next tender phase. By allowing a user to applydifferent negotiation strategies at each tender phase, the dynamic routeguide adds controlled elasticity to subsequent phases of the routeguide.

As an example scenario using a dynamic route guide, a shipper or freightbroker can establish a dynamic route guide to serve a defined shippinglane. The dynamic route guide issues a first phase that references asingle carrier and negotiation strategy. Negotiations for the freightload are exclusively active with the identified carrier. Should thecarrier reject or fail to respond within the parameters of the firstphase, then the first phase fails and the negotiation is closed, whichtriggers a second phase. The second phase similarly is a single carrierand negotiation strategy. Negotiations for the freight load areexclusively active with the identified carrier. Should the carrierreject or fail to respond within the parameters of the second phase,then the second phase fails and the negotiation is closed, whichtriggers a third phase. In contrast to the second phase, the third phasetenders the freight load to a meta tag that currently includes a list ofcarriers with a common negotiation strategy. Negotiations are openedwith the carriers simultaneously. Should the third phase fail to attractan acceptable offer, the negotiation is closed and a fourth phase of thedynamic route guide is triggered. The fourth phase is tendered to astrategic capacity profile that identifies a broader number of carriersand the tender is extended to the carriers.

Structured transaction data accumulated in the process of executing thedynamic route guides can be used to apply machine learning andartificial intelligence to autonomously build, adapt, and deploytendering phases of dynamic route guides. The accumulated structuredtransaction data may provide a breadth and depth of freight negotiationdetail in a highly structured fashion across thousands of businesses.Due to the observation of the trading methods across different marketconditions, the structured transaction data can be used with automatedmodel building tools to format optimal negotiation structures fordifferent market conditions and load requirement scenarios. For example,the structured transaction data can be used to train a machine learningmodel to generate pricing predictions for carriers and the machinelearning model can be employed as a pricing tool used in carriernegotiations.

FIG. 7 is a flow diagram illustrating an example method 700 for updatingcarrier data displayed in a graphical user interface in response to ameta tag being dynamically updated. As in block 710, transportationparameters for transporting a freight load from an origin location to adestination location can be sent from the graphical user interface to atransportation management service. In response to receiving thetransportation parameters, the transportation management serviceidentifies a strategic capacity profile that corresponds to thetransportation parameters. The strategic capacity profile defines astrategy for transporting the freight load using one or more meta tagsdescribing a carrier attribute. One or more of the meta tags may bedynamically updated to indicate changes to the carrier attributedescribed by the meta tags;

As in block 720, the graphical user interface receives carrier data fora plurality of carriers from the transportation management service. Thecarriers associated with the carrier data have the carrier attributedescribed by the meta tags included in the strategic capacity profile.As in block 730, the carrier data for the plurality of carriers can bedisplayed in the graphical user interface to allow one or more carriersto be selected to receive a tender of the freight load. As in block 740,the carrier data displayed in the graphical user interface can beupdated in response a meta tag included in the strategic capacityprofile being dynamically updated. For example, carrier data associatedwith a meta tag that is updated may also be updated to reflect a changemade to the meta tag.

FIG. 8 is a flow diagram illustrating an example method 800 for atransportation management service used to identify a set of carriers totransport a load. As in block 810, carrier data for a plurality ofcarriers can be analyzed to identify services and qualifications ofcarriers to provide transportation services. As in block 820, meta tagscan be generated for the carriers to describe service attributes andqualification attributes of the carriers. In one example, a graphicaluser interface can be provided to a user for creating a meta tag andassigning the meta tag to a carrier.

As in block 830, a strategic capacity profile can be created to define astrategy for transporting a load from an origin to a destination,wherein the strategic capacity profile can include a selection of one ormore of the meta tags that define the strategy for transporting theload. In one example, a graphical user interface can be provided to auser for creating a strategic capacity profile, allowing the user toselect meta tags to include in the strategic capacity profile. Inanother example, creating a strategic capacity profile can includeanalyzing historical carrier transaction data using machine learning toidentify carrier attributes associated with optimized shippingperformance, and generating the strategic capacity profile to include aset of meta tags that describe carrier attributes.

As in block 840, a request can be received for a set of carriers havingavailable capacity to transport the load. As in block 850, the strategiccapacity profile can be retrieved that defines the strategy fortransporting the load. In one example, the set of carriers can beidentified using predictive analytics that selects the strategiccapacity profile from a plurality of strategic capacity profiles.

As in block 860, the set of carriers can be identified using in part themeta tags included in the strategic capacity profile, wherein the set ofcarriers have attributes that correspond to the service attributes andqualification attributes described by the meta tags. In one example, anaverage price range for transporting the load can be calculated for eachcarrier in the set of carriers using historical transaction dataassociated with the set of carriers, and the average price range for theset of carriers can be provided to a user. A tender offer price rangefor transporting the load can be generated, and the tender offer pricerange can be based in part on historical transaction data associatedwith the set of carriers. The tenders can be sent to the set ofcarriers, wherein a tender can be transmitted to a carrier portal toallow a carrier to evaluate the tender.

FIG. 9 illustrates a computing device 910 on which modules of thetechnology described in this disclosure may execute. A computing device910 is illustrated on which a high level example of the technology maybe executed. The computing device 910 may include one or more processors912 that are in communication with memory devices 920. The computingdevice 910 may include a local communication interface 918 for thecomponents in the computing device. For example, the local communicationinterface 918 may be a local data bus and/or any related address orcontrol busses as may be desired.

The memory device 920 may contain modules 924 that are executable by theprocessor(s) 912 and data for the modules 924. For example, the memorydevice 920 can include one or more modules for a transportationmanagement service. The modules 924 may execute the functions describedearlier. A data store 922 may also be located in the memory device 920for storing data related to the modules 924 and other applications alongwith an operating system that is executable by the processor(s) 912.

Other applications may also be stored in the memory device 920 and maybe executable by the processor(s) 912. Components or modules discussedin this description that may be implemented in the form of softwareusing high-level programming languages that are compiled, interpreted orexecuted using a hybrid of the methods.

The computing device 910 may also have access to I/O (input/output)devices 914 that are usable by the computing device 910. Other known I/Odevices may be used with the computing device 910 as desired. Networkingdevices 916 and similar communication devices may be included in thecomputing device. The networking devices 916 may be wired or wirelessnetworking devices that connect to the internet, a LAN, WAN, or othercomputing network.

The components or modules that are shown as being stored in the memorydevice 920 may be executed by the processor(s) 912. The term“executable” may mean a program file that is in a form that may beexecuted by a processor 912. For example, a program in a higher levellanguage may be compiled into machine code in a format that may beloaded into a random access portion of the memory device 920 andexecuted by the processor 912, or source code may be loaded by anotherexecutable program and interpreted to generate instructions in a randomaccess portion of the memory to be executed by a processor. Theexecutable program may be stored in any portion or component of thememory device 920. For example, the memory device 920 may be randomaccess memory (RAM), read only memory (ROM), flash memory, a solid statedrive, memory card, a hard drive, optical disk, floppy disk, magnetictape, or any other memory components.

The processor 912 may represent multiple processors and the memory 920may represent multiple memory units that operate in parallel to theprocessing circuits. This may provide parallel processing channels forthe processes and data in the system. The local interface 918 may beused as a network to facilitate communication between any of themultiple processors and multiple memories. The local interface 918 mayuse additional systems designed for coordinating communication such asload balancing, bulk data transfer and similar systems.

While the flowcharts presented for this technology may imply a specificorder of execution, the order of execution may differ from what isillustrated. For example, the order of two more blocks may be rearrangedrelative to the order shown. Further, two or more blocks shown insuccession may be executed in parallel or with partial parallelization.In some configurations, one or more blocks shown in the flow chart maybe omitted or skipped. Any number of counters, state variables, warningsemaphores, or messages might be added to the logical flow for purposesof enhanced utility, accounting, performance, measurement,troubleshooting or for similar reasons.

Some of the functional units described in this specification have beenlabeled as modules, in order to more particularly emphasize theirimplementation independence. For example, a module may be implemented asa hardware circuit comprising custom VLSI circuits or gate arrays,off-the-shelf semiconductors such as logic chips, transistors, or otherdiscrete components. A module may also be implemented in programmablehardware devices such as field programmable gate arrays, programmablearray logic, programmable logic devices or the like.

Modules may also be implemented in software for execution by varioustypes of processors. An identified module of executable code may, forinstance, comprise one or more blocks of computer instructions, whichmay be organized as an object, procedure, or function. Nevertheless, theexecutables of an identified module need not be physically locatedtogether, but may comprise disparate instructions stored in differentlocations which comprise the module and achieve the stated purpose forthe module when joined logically together.

Indeed, a module of executable code may be a single instruction or manyinstructions and may even be distributed over several different codesegments, among different programs and across several memory devices.Similarly, operational data may be identified and illustrated hereinwithin modules and may be embodied in any suitable form and organizedwithin any suitable type of data structure. The operational data may becollected as a single data set, or may be distributed over differentlocations including over different storage devices. The modules may bepassive or active, including agents operable to perform desiredfunctions.

The technology described herein may also be stored on a computerreadable storage medium that includes volatile and non-volatile,removable and non-removable media implemented with any technology forthe storage of information such as computer readable instructions, datastructures, program modules, or other data. Computer readable storagemedia include, but is not limited to, non-transitory media such as RAM,ROM, EEPROM, flash memory or other memory technology, optical storage,magnetic storage devices, or any other computer storage medium which maybe used to store the desired information and described technology.

The devices described herein may also contain communication connectionsor networking apparatus and networking connections that allow thedevices to communicate with other devices. Communication connections arean example of communication media. Communication media typicallyembodies computer readable instructions, data structures, programmodules and other data in a modulated data signal such as a carrier waveor other transport mechanism and includes any information deliverymedia. A “modulated data signal” means a signal that has one or more ofits characteristics set or changed in such a manner as to encodeinformation in the signal. By way of example and not limitation,communication media includes wired media such as a wired network ordirect-wired connection and wireless media such as acoustic, radiofrequency, infrared and other wireless media. The term computer readablemedia as used herein includes communication media.

Reference was made to the examples illustrated in the drawings andspecific language was used herein to describe the same. It willnevertheless be understood that no limitation of the scope of thetechnology is thereby intended. Alterations and further modifications ofthe features illustrated herein and additional applications of theexamples as illustrated herein are to be considered within the scope ofthe description.

Furthermore, the described features, structures, or characteristics maybe combined in any suitable manner in one or more examples. In thepreceding description, numerous specific details were provided, such asexamples of various configurations to provide a thorough understandingof examples of the described technology. It will be recognized, however,that the technology may be practiced without one or more of the specificdetails, or with other methods, components, devices, etc. In otherinstances, well-known structures or operations are not shown ordescribed in detail to avoid obscuring aspects of the technology.

EXAMPLES

The following examples pertain to specific invention embodiments andpoint out specific features, elements, or steps that can be used orotherwise combined in achieving such embodiments.

In one example there is provided, a system for freight transportationmanagement, comprising:

-   at least one processor;-   a memory device including instructions that, when executed by the at    least one processor, cause the system to:    -   receive transportation parameters for transporting a freight        load from an origin location to a destination location;    -   identify a strategic capacity profile that corresponds to the        transportation parameters, wherein the strategic capacity        profile defines a strategy for transporting the freight load        using at least one meta tag describing a carrier attribute;    -   retrieve the at least one meta tag included in the strategic        capacity profile, wherein meta tags assigned to carriers are        dynamically updated to indicate changes to carrier attributes of        the carriers;    -   identify one or more carriers that have the carrier attribute        described by the at least one meta tag indicating that the one        or more carriers are eligible to transport the freight load; and    -   provide, to a graphical user interface, carrier data for the one        or more carriers to allow the one or more carriers to be        selected to receive a tender of the freight load, wherein the        carrier data displayed in the graphical user interface is        updated in response to the at least one meta tag being        dynamically updated. In one example of the system, the carrier        data includes average pricing for transporting the freight load        by the one or more carriers, which is calculated using final        carrier bid data included in historical transaction data        associated with the one or more carriers.

In one example of the system, the memory device further includesinstructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, causethe system to determine a price at which to offer the tender fortransporting the freight load, wherein the price is based in part onaverage pricing for transporting the load by the one or more carriers.

In one example of the system, the memory device further includesinstructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, causethe system to send the tender to the one or more carriers selected.

In one example of the system, the transportation parameters for thefreight load from the origin location to the destination locationinclude a load type, load dimensions, a time frame for shipping theload, or price constraints.

In one example of the system, the carrier attributes described by the atleast one meta tag includes a service attribute, an activity attribute,or a qualification attribute.

In one example of the system, the graphical user interface receives thetransportation parameters for transporting the freight load.

In one example of the system, the memory device further includesinstructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, causethe system to:

-   analyze carrier data for a plurality of carriers to identify    services, activities, and qualifications of the plurality of    carriers to provide transportation services; and-   generate the meta tags for the carriers to describe the services,    activities, and qualifications of the plurality of carriers.

In one example of the system, the memory device further includesinstructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, causethe system to receive a selection of one or more meta tags to include inthe strategic capacity profile that defines the strategy fortransporting the load.

In one example there is provided, a computer implemented method,comprising:

-   analyzing carrier data for a plurality of carriers to identify    services and qualifications of carriers to provide transportation    services;-   generating meta tags for the carriers to describe service attributes    and qualification attributes of the carriers, wherein the meta tags    are dynamically updated to indicate changes to the service    attributes and the qualification attributes of the carriers;-   creating a strategic capacity profile that defines a strategy for    transporting a freight load from an origin location to a destination    location, wherein the strategic capacity profile includes a    selection of one or more of the meta tags that define the strategy    for transporting the load;-   receiving a request for a set of carriers having available capacity    to transport the freight load;-   retrieving the strategic capacity profile that defines the strategy    for transporting the freight load;-   identifying the set of carriers using in part the meta tags included    in the strategic capacity profile, wherein the set of carriers have    attributes that correspond to the service attributes and the    qualification attributes described by the meta tags; and-   providing, to a graphical user interface, carrier data for the set    of carriers to allow one or more carriers to be selected to receive    a tender of the freight load, wherein the carrier data displayed in    the graphical user interface is updated in response to at least one    of the meta tags being dynamically updated.

In one example of the computer implemented method, the method furthercomprises:

-   calculating an average price range for transporting the freight load    for each carrier in the set of carriers using historical transaction    data associated with the set of carriers; and-   providing the average price range for the set of carriers.

In one example of the computer implemented method, the method furthercomprises generating a tender offer price range for transporting theload which is based in part on historical transaction data associatedwith the set of carriers.

In one example of the computer implemented method, the method furthercomprises sending tenders to the set of carriers, wherein a tender istransmitted to a carrier portal to allow a carrier to evaluate thetender.

In one example of the computer implemented method, the graphical userinterface is provided for creating the meta tags and assigning the metatags to the carriers.

In one example of the computer implemented method, the graphical userinterface is provided for creating the strategic capacity profile,allowing a user to select the meta tags to be included in the strategiccapacity profile.

In one example of the computer implemented method, creating thestrategic capacity profile to define the strategy for transporting theload further comprises:

-   analyzing historical carrier transaction data associated with loads    having the origin location and the destination location using    machine learning to identify carrier attributes associated with    optimized shipping performance; and-   generating the strategic capacity profile to include a set of meta    tags that describe carrier attributes.

In one example of the computer implemented method, identifying the setof carriers using in part the strategic capacity profile furthercomprises identifying the set of carriers using predictive analyticsthat selects the strategic capacity profile from a plurality ofstrategic capacity profiles.

In one example there is provided, a non-transitory machine readablestorage medium including instructions embodied thereon for a graphicaluser interface, the instructions when executed by one or moreprocessors:

-   send, to a transportation management service, transportation    parameters for transporting a freight load from an origin location    to a destination location,-   wherein the transportation parameters allow a strategic capacity    profile that corresponds to the transportation parameters to be    identified where the strategic capacity profile defines a strategy    for transporting the freight load using at least one meta tag    describing a carrier attribute,-   wherein the at least one meta tag is dynamically updated to indicate    changes to the carrier attribute described by the at least one meta    tag;-   receive carrier data for a plurality of carriers that have the    carrier attribute described by the at least one meta tag; and-   display the carrier data for the plurality of carriers to allow one    or more carriers to be selected to receive a tender of the freight    load, wherein the carrier data displayed in the graphical user    interface is updated in response to the at least one meta tag being    dynamically updated.

In one example of the non-transitory machine readable storage medium,the non-transitory machine readable storage medium further includesinstructions, that when executed by the one or more processors:

-   receive a filter parameter via the graphical user interface; and-   filter the carrier data for the plurality of carriers displayed in    the graphical user interface using the filter parameter.

In one example of the non-transitory machine readable storage medium,the non-transitory machine readable storage medium further includesinstructions, that when executed by the one or more processors

-   calculate average pricing for transporting the freight load by a    carrier, wherein the average pricing is calculated using the    historical transaction data associated with the carrier; and-   display the average pricing in the graphical user interface.

In one example of the non-transitory machine readable storage medium,the non-transitory machine readable storage medium further includesinstructions, that when executed by the one or more processors, generatea tender offer price for transporting the load which is based in part onaverage pricing calculated using historical transaction data associatedwith a carrier.

In one example of the non-transitory machine readable storage medium,the non-transitory machine readable storage medium further includesinstructions, that when executed by the one or more processors, receivean instruction to transmit a tender to a carrier portal associated witha carrier to allow the carrier to evaluate the tender.

In one example of the non-transitory machine readable storage medium,the at least one meta tag describes a service attribute or aqualification attribute of a carrier.

What is claimed is:
 1. A freight transportation management system,comprising: at least one processor; a memory device includinginstructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, causethe system to: receive transportation parameters for transporting afreight load said transportation parameters including at least an originlocation and a destination location; generate a strategic capacityprofile corresponding to the transportation parameters, said strategiccapacity profile defining a strategy for transporting the freight loadusing one or more meta tags describing a carrier attribute; retrieve theone or more meta tags included in the strategic capacity profile,wherein meta tags assigned to carriers are dynamically updated toindicate changes to carrier attributes of the carriers; identify one ormore carriers that have the carrier attribute described by the at leastone meta tag indicating that the one or more carriers are eligible totransport the freight load; and provide, to a graphical user interface,carrier data for the one or more carriers to allow the one or morecarriers to be selected to receive a tender of the freight load, whereinthe carrier data displayed in the graphical user interface is updated inresponse to the at least one meta tag being dynamically updated.
 2. Thesystem in claim 1, wherein the carrier data includes average pricing fortransporting the freight load by the one or more carriers, which iscalculated using final carrier bid data included in historicaltransaction data associated with the one or more carriers.
 3. The systemin claim 1, wherein the memory device further includes instructionsthat, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the system todetermine a price at which to offer the tender for transporting thefreight load, wherein the price is based in part on average pricing fortransporting the load by the one or more carriers.
 4. The system inclaim 1, wherein the memory device further includes instructions that,when executed by the at least one processor, cause the system to sendthe tender to the one or more carriers selected.
 5. The system in claim1, wherein the transportation parameters for the freight load include:the origin location, the destination location, a load type, loaddimensions, a time frame for shipping the load, or price constraints. 6.The system in claim 1, wherein the carrier attribute described by the atleast one meta tag includes a service attribute, an activity attribute,or a qualification attribute.
 7. The system in claim 1, wherein thegraphical user interface receives the transportation parameters fortransporting the freight load.
 8. The system in claim 1, wherein thememory device further includes instructions that, when executed by theat least one processor, cause the system to: analyze carrier data for aplurality of carriers to identify services, activities, andqualifications of the plurality of carriers to provide transportationservices; and generate meta tags for the plurality of carriers todescribe the services, activities, and qualifications of the pluralityof carriers.
 9. The system in claim 1, wherein the memory device furtherincludes instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor,cause the system to receive a selection of one or more meta tags toinclude in the strategic capacity profile that defines the strategy fortransporting the load.
 10. A computer implemented method, comprising:analyzing carrier data for a plurality of carriers to identify servicesand qualifications of carriers to provide transportation services;generating meta tags for the carriers to describe service attributes andqualification attributes of the carriers, wherein the meta tags aredynamically updated to indicate changes to the service attributes andthe qualification attributes of the carriers; creating a strategiccapacity profile that defines a strategy for transporting a freight loadfrom an origin location to a destination location, wherein the strategiccapacity profile includes a selection of one or more of the meta tagsthat define the strategy for transporting the load; receiving a requestfor a set of carriers having available capacity to transport the freightload; retrieving the strategic capacity profile that defines thestrategy for transporting the freight load; identifying the set ofcarriers using in part the meta tags included in the strategic capacityprofile, wherein the set of carriers have attributes that correspond tothe service attributes and the qualification attributes described by themeta tags; and providing, to a graphical user interface, carrier datafor the set of carriers to allow one or more carriers to be selected toreceive a tender of the freight load, wherein the carrier data displayedin the graphical user interface is updated in response to at least oneof the meta tags being dynamically updated.
 11. The method in claim 10,further comprising: calculating an average price range for transportingthe freight load for each carrier in the set of carriers usinghistorical transaction data associated with the set of carriers; andproviding the average price range for the set of carriers.
 12. Themethod in claim 10 further comprising generating a tender offer pricerange for transporting the load which is based in part on historicaltransaction data associated with the set of carriers.
 13. The method inclaim 10, further comprising sending tenders to the set of carriers,wherein a tender is transmitted to a carrier portal to allow a carrierto evaluate the tender.
 14. The method in claim 10, wherein thegraphical user interface is provided for creating the meta tags andassigning the meta tags to the carriers.
 15. The method in claim 10,wherein the graphical user interface is provided for creating thestrategic capacity profile, allowing a user to select the meta tags tobe included in the strategic capacity profile.
 16. The method in claim10, wherein creating the strategic capacity profile to define thestrategy for transporting the load further comprises: analyzinghistorical carrier transaction data associated with loads having theorigin location and the destination location using machine learning toidentify carrier attributes associated with optimized shippingperformance; and generating the strategic capacity profile to include aset of meta tags that describe carrier attributes.
 17. The method inclaim 10, wherein identifying the set of carriers using in part thestrategic capacity profile further comprises identifying the set ofcarriers using predictive analytics to select the strategic capacityprofile from a plurality of strategic capacity profiles.
 18. Anon-transitory machine readable storage medium including instructionsembodied thereon for a graphical user interface, the instructions whenexecuted by one or more processors: send, to a transportation managementservice, transportation parameters for transporting a freight load froman origin location to a destination location, wherein the transportationparameters allow a strategic capacity profile that corresponds to thetransportation parameters to be identified where the strategic capacityprofile defines a strategy for transporting the freight load using atleast one meta tag describing a carrier attribute, wherein the at leastone meta tag is dynamically updated to indicate changes to the carrierattribute described by the at least one meta tag; receive carrier datafor a plurality of carriers that have the carrier attribute described bythe at least one meta tag; and display the carrier data for theplurality of carriers to allow one or more carriers to be selected toreceive a tender of the freight load, wherein the carrier data displayedin the graphical user interface is updated in response to the at leastone meta tag being dynamically updated.
 19. The non-transitory machinereadable storage medium in claim 18, further comprising instructions,that when executed by the one or more processors: receive a filterparameter via the graphical user interface; and filter the carrier datafor the plurality of carriers displayed in the graphical user interfaceusing the filter parameter.
 20. The non-transitory machine readablestorage medium in claim 18, further comprising instructions, that whenexecuted by the one or more processors: calculate average pricing fortransporting the load by a carrier, wherein the average pricing iscalculated using historical transaction data associated with thecarrier; and display the average pricing in the graphical userinterface.
 21. The non-transitory machine readable storage medium inclaim 18, further comprising instructions, that when executed by the oneor more processors, generate a tender offer price for transporting theload which is based in part on average pricing calculated usinghistorical transaction data associated with a carrier.
 22. Thenon-transitory machine readable storage medium in claim 18, furthercomprising instructions, that when executed by the one or moreprocessors, receive an instruction to transmit a tender to a carrierportal associated with a carrier to allow the carrier to evaluate thetender.
 23. The non-transitory machine readable storage medium in claim18, wherein the at least one meta tag describes a service attribute or aqualification attribute of a carrier.